Topland Group Marick And Mill Lane Create Hotel Development Business

Sep
2015

Topland Group has taken advantage of hotel development opportunities across the UK by launching a joint venture with Marick Real Estate and Mill Lane Estates.

Topland, one of the largest privately owned international investment groups, led by Sol Zakay, is the majority equity partner in this new venture. Topland, already a major player in commercial real estate and structured finance, has continued to increase its profile in the hotel sector.

The first project for the joint venture, Trafford City Hotel Ltd, has already been identified, following the purchase from Peel Holdings of a 1.75-acre development site opposite the EventCity venue at the Trafford Centre in Greater Manchester. Planning permission is in place for a new 203-bedroom hotel and it is expected work will commence in early 2016, ahead of the 2018 extension of the Manchester Metrolink tram system. The Trafford City Hotel will be operated by Tower Hotel Management which is part of the Peel Group.

It is anticipated that the Trafford City Hotel will be the first of many projects undertaken by the partnership. The Topland-led partnership follows the company’s successful collaboration on the construction of a 209-bedroom Hampton by Hilton hotel at London City Airport, for which Topland provided Marick with a £22 million development finance facility. Mill Lane Estates is the development manager on the Docklands project.

Work has started on site and is expected to open for Christmas 2016.

Topland structured finance manager, Edward Matthews, said: “Located opposite EventCity and very close to the Trafford Centre, this site is ideally-suited to the development of a new hotel and as such represents an excellent debut for the new joint venture with Marick and Mill Lane Estates. Discussions with a leading brand are already well-advanced. We anticipate the hotel will be the first choice for guests visiting EventCity.”

The new joint venture forms part of Topland’s committed strategy to boost its established exposure to the hotel sector. The company has committed to deploy over £200 million of development finance, mezzanine finance and joint venture equity and already owns extensive hotel assets including the Royal Crescent Hotel in Bath, portfolios of both Hilton and Thistle hotels, the newly expanded Hallmark Hotel Group and the Feathers hotel portfolio.

Sol Zakay, Executive Chairman and CEO of Topland, said: “We continue to see considerable value in hotels. Topland continue to expand our exposure and commitment to the hotel sector. We are in the process of assembling a pipeline of hotel development opportunities within the new joint venture with Marick, Mill Lane Estates and others. We are actively seeking further sites throughout the UK suitable for such development.”